Will Jeremy Lin Return To The Houston Rockets?

Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin will have plenty of suitors come July 1; should he reunite with Mike D’Antoni?

A week or so ago, Mike D’Antoni–formerly of the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns, among others–was hired as head coach of the Houston Rockets.

In light of that, word on the curb is that The Rockets allegedly have “the inside track”   on signing free agent Jeremy Lin of the Charlotte Hornets and also formerly of the Rockets.

D’Antoni, whose most recent stint was as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers, coached Lin during his “Linsanity” days with the New York Knicks.

Lin played some of the best ball of his career under D’Antoni, which led to Linsanity, which led to Lin getting run out of town, allegedly due to teammate jealousy (*cough* Carmelo Anthony *cough*).

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Lin went to the Rockets after the Knicks declined to match his offer sheet (again, rumored to be engineered by Anthony). He was relatively solid, if sometimes underutilized, under former head coach Kevin McHale.

However, the Rockets needed to make space for Dwight Howard (who was looking at the purple-and-gold front door of the Lakers) and tried to clear enough money to re-sign then-restricted free agent Chandler Parsons (who ended up leaving for the Dallas Mavericks when the Rockets didn’t match the Mavs’ offer sheet).

Lin was sent to Lakerland, where he was one of the recipients of former head coach Byron Scott‘s inscrutable thought processes (e.g., taking a proven scorer and playmaker–Lin–out of the starting lineup for … an unproven rookie. And then losing those games. Alrighty then.)

Lin left the drama of Los Angeles behind and landed in Charlotte on a cap-friendly, two-year, $4.2 million deal with a player option in the second year.

If Lin played some of the best hoops of his career under D’Antoni in the Big Apple, then he arguably reached the pinnacle in the Queen City under Hornets head coach Steve Clifford.

Lin was happy to come off the bench and provided a burst of scoring and a much-needed respite for Hornets point guard and franchise player Kemba Walker.

Lin’s playmaking abilities allowed Clifford to play Walker and Lin together, a combination which helped lead Charlotte to a very respectable 48-34 record and their first playoff win in 14 years.

Though they got bounced in the first round by the Miami Heat, their run of success was enough to have the team’s free agents openly wanting to re-up their citizenship in Buzz City.

Lin, though he has declined his player option to get his slice of the insanely expanded salary cap (which would be way more than the $2.1 million he’d get if he didn’t opt out), has even offered to take a pay cut to suit up in the Purple and Teal come training camp time in September.

Being a part of the Hornets team helped him rediscover his basketball joy and he also said he was tired of packing and unpacking boxes every year or so (the Hornets are the fourth NBA team of his six-year career, not counting his stint in the D-League).

All I have to say is: stay put, Lin.

Nostalgia is a potent force; how else can we explain the usually ill-advised attempts to get back with our exes? After the glow of selective memory and good times wears off, we begin to remember why we broke up in the first place.

Lin had some good moments in Houston and some great moments with D’Antoni in New York. But you can’t cross the same river twice: the place where you crossed isn’t the same river and you aren’t the same person.

Lin isn’t that fairly new guy in the league –one step removed from the D-League–who was playing in the NBA’s largest media market. He also isn’t that guy in Houston who was just hoping for a chance to show that Linsanity wasn’t a fluke.

And even if D’Antoni is a good enough reason to put on the rose-colored glasses of good times past, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey is an equally good reason to yank them off.

Remember him, Lin? He’s still running the show for the Rockets and he’s the dude who traded you to that ball of confusion that was the Lakers after only a season.  Les Alexander still owns the team and he signed off on your departure. Just a friendly reminder.

If it’s not about the money, then sit tight in Charlotte. You’ve found a place where you got your hoops groove back, and a bunch of teammates with whom you enjoy playing.

You’ve found another coach who is able to get the best out of you–and in any professional sports league, that’s almost as rare as hen’s teeth. 

Granted, you won’t get max money but when His Airness (who is majority owner of the team) once called you the biggest acquisition of last season, and combined with your overall performance this past season, trust that you’ll be taken care of on the financial tip.

And the housing market in Charlotte is on the upswing, should you be inclined to finally buy instead of rent.

Real estate is always a good investment. Just saying.

As a free agent, Lin owes it to himself to listen to all of the offers and make an informed decision.

But sometimes, you don’t know what you need until it appears ,and what once mattered to you no longer does.

Related Story: 25 Best Players to Play for the Charlotte Hornets

Your heart is with the Hornets, Lin. Follow your heart.